Turtle Boy nears 100

“Turtle Boy” has been gracing (or is it cursing?) downtown Worcester for what will be a century next year. It turns out that the statue was the product of a delusional mind.

By Craig Semon TELEGRAM & GAZETTE STAFF

“Phantom Critics Drive Him to Suicide” blared the headline in The New York Times a century ago.

Another follows: “…Kills Himself in Bronx Park on Day ‘the Voices' Set.”

And later, in smaller type, “Leaves Unfinished Statue.”

The Jan. 29, 1912, newspaper obituary describes the life and death of New York-based artist Charles Y. Harvey, age 43. The unfinished statue he left behind was none other than the Burnside Fountain, known in Worcester as the “Boy with a Turtle,” or simply, “Turtle Boy.”

“Turtle Boy” has been gracing (or is it cursing?) downtown Worcester for what will be a century next year. It turns out that the statue was the product of a delusional mind.

On the morning of Jan. 28, 1912, in Bronx Park, students stumbled upon the body of a man lying face up in the grass. It was Mr. Harvey. His throat was cut. On the ground nearby lay two razors.

“Harvey was bitterly despondent about his work and so sensitive to the slightest criticism that any expression of adverse opinion caused him genuine suffering,” the artist's obituary read. “His friends and fellow craftsmen, however, were most favorably impressed with the unfinished work that stands in his studio. It is the life-size figure of a crouching boy, holding a tortoise.”

The obituary continued: “But the work of his hands dissatisfied him and, as he tried to make headway, he was haunted by the voices of unseen persona, who bade him take his life. The command was explicit. The voices, from which he could not escape, directed relentlessly that he lay aside his tools and kill himself.”

The half-ton bronze sculpture, depicting a nude boy holding a hawksbill sea turtle just below his knees, would later be completed by sculptor Sherry Edmundson Fry.

“I heard from him about a week ago, and there was nothing in his letter to indicate that he was despondent or was contemplating suicide,” his brother, John J. Harvey, was quoted by The New York Times after Charles Harvey's death. “I had known for some time that he was engaged in what he hoped would be a masterpiece, which I understood was for some building in Worcester. As far as I knew it was progressing satisfactorily.”

“Turtle Boy” was bequeathed to the city by Harriet P.F. Burnside in honor of her father, Samuel M. Burnside, a prominent Worcester lawyer. Originally placed in Central Square, it was moved to the Common facing Salem Square in 1969. It was stolen in May 1970, returned later that year, placed back on its pedestal in 1972, toppled over in 2004, and placed back on its pedestal later in the year.

Kristina Wilson, associate professor in the Department of Visual and Performing Arts at Clark University, said that no matter what one might read into the statue, she thinks “Turtle Boy” is supposed to be about innocence, joy and rebirth.

Noting that Mr. Harvey was trained at the American Academy in Rome, she said, “He is coming out of a tradition of sculpture and painting where the human figure is the apex of beauty, and how well you can capture that is the demonstration of your artistic talents.”

Out of curiosity, Ms. Wilson asked around campus about “Turtle Boy,” and one of her colleagues chimed in, “Oh, that's Worcester's monument to bestiality.”

“It's unfortunate, because it really does look like something untoward is going on,” Ms. Wilson said. “The thing I always end up saying to my students is, ultimately, the category of whether or not it's art, that's really not something you can argue with. Whether it's good art or bad art is something else. I would say that this is not the best.”

Still, as a monument, as a work of public art and as a piece of Worcester's quirky history, Ms. Wilson said, “Turtle Boy” deserves to be protected.

Councilor-at-Large Kathleen M. Toomey said she would love to see “Turtle Boy” restored and made a working fountain again, but it's going to require a hefty chunk of change — between $40,000 to $60,000 — that the city simply doesn't have.

J. Stuart Esty, owner of Dr. Gonzo's Uncommon Condiments, 122 Main St., is on a personal mission to turn the Burnside Fountain into a national icon.

“I figure if Brussels can have the Manneken Pis, why isn't Worcester wrapping its head around and taking ownership of the ‘Turtle Boy'?” Mr. Esty asked, referring to the famous statue in Belgium of a naked little boy urinating into a fountain. “Why don't we have a ‘Turtle Boy' small bronze statue? Why not turn the old Paris Cinema into a ‘Turtle Boy' memorabilia place? Why am I the only person selling ‘Turtle Boy' postcards on the planet?”

Mr. Esty acknowledges that ‘Turtle Boy' is slightly disturbing. Then again, he said, a lot of things in life are slightly disturbing. “Turtle Boy” is one of the things that makes Worcester unique.

“What I love about it is seeing people who may be seeing it for the first time,” Mr. Esty said. “It's always fun to see their different takes on it, folks taking photographs, people trying to mount it themselves.”

Cathy Walsh, owner of Sprout at 118A June St., said “Turtle Boy” invites people to interact with it. “There's something about ‘Turtle Boy' that he has a personality and approachability. To me that's the great thing about the ‘Turtle Boy.' ”

Worcester Arts Council Chairman Helen Sheldon Beaumont said the city should do something special to celebrate the undeniably quirky and distinctive fountain.

Like the little statue in Brussels, which is often dressed up, “Turtle Boy” “gets adorned with things from time to time, Mardi Gras beads. He sometimes has a scarf. Sometimes he has a snow hat on. There are people in the community who dress him up. We don't know who it is,” Ms. Beaumont said.

Ms. Walsh said that for the “Turtle Boy” centennial celebration, enthusiasts are working on something special.

Claudia Snell, creator of the website worcesterturtleboy.com and a series of “Turtle Boy” postcards, said she, too, would love to see a “Turtle Boy” parade.

“It's definitely a piece of art, and it's a Worcester icon,” Ms. Snell said. “There are lots of cities that have statues that are humorous or cause discussion and they embrace them. And we embrace ours.”

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